Our team is always seeking the latest news in the field of education. As advocates for a quality education for ALL students, we know we have to stay up-to-date on everything that’s going on in the education spheres of our nation…from the White House to the local public school district, from new legislation to the small acts of bravery and kindness made by a single teacher, from the milestones and celebrations to the hazardous injustices affecting many of our nations students.

Here are the best stories we came across last week…because we believe you should stay up-to-date, too!

 

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Study: Students in New York City’s Pre-K for All program show learning gains via Chalkbeat

New York City’s Pre-K program seems to be providing many benefits to the city’s young children. Not only are parents and teachers pleased, but students are showing great gains in their academic skills.

“An independent research firm hired by the city’s Department of Education found that families are highly satisfied with the program, which now serves more than 70,000 students, and that most teachers are happy with their jobs. Notably, the research — which was done with help from New York University — also found that students were gaining measurable academic skills.”

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Federal Probe Finds Discrimination at Boston Latin via The Boston Globe

After an investigation at Boston Latin Public School, the government found that the school was in violation of the Civil Rights Act in several instances regarding student race.

“The civil rights probe, commissioned in March, confirmed reports of discrimination first publicly made by students in January, including an incident in which a black female student was called a racial slur by a male student who also threatened to lynch her with an electrical cord. Ortiz found that the school’s mishandling of the incident was a direct violation of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination and harassment at public schools.”

 

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Opinion: Sorting Out the Issues in the Teacher Shortage Crisis via The 74 Million

The 74 Million shows the truth behind the numbers regarding the Teacher Shortage Crisis. Is it really as bad as it seems?

“The bottom line is that it is dicey to use historical figures on entrance or return rates of prospective or former teachers to inform what will happen to the future supply of new teachers. It is not difficult, however, to estimate the number of potential first-time teachers in a given year; this is just the number of recent graduates of teacher education programs.”

 

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The New Reformers: City-Loving Millennials Who Want Quality Schools Not Tied to Their ZIP Code via The 74 Million

The 74 Million looks at the economics behind being a young millennial parent. The cities they want to live in don’t always have the best education options for their growing children.

“…these new young urbanites have some of the cultural and educational markers of privilege, but they don’t usually have the income or savings to match. This combination puts them in a position where their familial interests don’t align with those of wealthy, older families who have already secured their places in broadly privileged neighborhoods. And that has implications for the future of cities’ zoning, transit, public safety and open space policies. Why not schools?“

 

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Did any of these articles particularly speak to you? We would love to know your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below: